1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fasteners, and more particularly to a fastener for high impact applications especially common in the field of skateboarding.
2. Description of the Related Art
Skateboards are commonly used for recreation and competition purposes. Typical skateboards comprise an elongated board supported on two spaced-apart wheel trucks comprising two wheels each mounted to the underside of the elongated board. Skateboard trucks may further utilize a high performance grinding king pin for attaching a skateboard truck to a baseplate, such as the high performance king pin shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,898,298. The elongated board is constructed of a high impact, resilient and durable material such as a wood laminate or the like, on which the skateboard rider balances himself and adjusts the direction of travel by adjusting the pressure of his weight at various locations on the board.
Due to tremendous forces exerted upon the skateboard, it is desirable to be able to remove the trucks, wheels, and other components for repair or replacement on a periodic basis. Heretofore, skateboard trucks have been secured to the elongated board by carriage bolts and the like extending through a recess formed in the board. It is important that the attachment hardware does not introduce an impediment to the skateboard rider on the top surface of the skateboard. Thus, an important shortcoming of the fastener of the prior art is the absence of suitable gripping surfaces on the typically smooth head of the carriage bolt to enable a positive disengagement and effect good torque against the attachment hardware when a wrench is applied to a fastener at the underside of the elongated board, for securing the truck or other component to the underside of the board. Damage to the top surface of the elongated board, such as splitting of the top wood surface, is known to occur when inappropriate tools are applied to the bolt head in an effort to loosen the carriage bolts and provide the necessary amount of torque. Moreover, the prior art carriage bolt is known to shift and rotate during removal and installation and even when the skateboard is being ridden by impact and vibration, thus causing internal wear and tear of the elongated board and possibly shortening the life of the elongated board.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fastener for securing trucks and other components to a skateboard, the fastener providing a secure attachment system while enabling ready removal of selected components without damage to the skateboard during removal and replacement.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fastener having greater torque capacity and yet is readily secured to the skateboard, especially over a period of time and use.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a fastener that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and is interchangeable with fasteners of the related art.
These and other object and advantages are obtained with a bolt having a head from which one or more fillets extend in coaxial alignment along the bolt shaft, and are equiangularly spaced about the bolt shaft. The fillets decrease in outer diameter as they extend down from the bolt head and terminate at or above a threaded extent of the shaft. Outer flange-like tips extend from the substantially planar bolt head in a spaced, circumferential arrangement, the flanges being turned down in the direction of the top surface of the skateboard. When tightened, the fillets engage with the walls of the bolt hole and the flanges bite into the top surface of the skateboard, preventing rotation of the bolt in the fully installed condition when a wrench is applied to a fastener at the underside of the skateboard to, for example, remove and replace a truck, and providing a stable attachment system therebetween.
The invention will be better understood upon a reading of the following specification, read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.